Coverup
by MXG
Summary: A web of lies is never good...but a little manipulation never hurt anyone. AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Me: ALRIGHT, I've got a story WITH PLOT this time!  
**

**Ikuto: Hahaha. -rolls eyes- You're _funny_. Isn't she _funny, _Amu?**

**Amu: ...please don't drag me into this.**

**Me: TOO LATE! ****You're the plot device, baby—AND THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT!**

**(Yes, this story is a reworking of Shugo Chara Party! Episode 7. It's pretty loosely based, though.)**

* * *

**Nagihiko's POV**

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!" The shrillest scream I've ever heard pierced my eardrums.

_Ow._

Wincing, I rubbed my temples and went off to find Amu—the obvious source of the scream; who else could produce such a yell?

As I headed toward the pinkette, I noticed Rima was here as well. Lovely.

Amu was stuttering like mad. "K-k-ko-korewa?!?!"

Rima echoed her question. "Korewa…?" she murmured in that quiet voice of hers.

I called to them. "Amu-chan! Rima-chan! Ohayo! What—"

Before I could ask what she was screaming over, Amu yanked me over to a bulletin board.

"NAGIHIKO!" she demanded, "WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!?!"

I followed her arm to a rather fancy, glittery poster…_advertising one of Nadeshiko's performances._

My stomach dropped. _Dammit! They've put up the poster already! Ohgod. Ohgod. This is not good._

Amu continued, "Nadeshiko came back to Japan? Why didn't you tell me?" she practically sobbed.

I was having a hard time finding an answer. "Erm—well—"

"And why hasn't she contacted me?" she asked despondently.

Rima looked at me suspiciously. "Yes…I wonder…"

I sweatdropped. _Dammit._

"Nagihiko…" Amu continued begging, "I want to see Nadeshiko. Please?"

_Well, this complicates things._

~ x ~ x ~ x ~ x ~ x ~

**Nadeshiko's POV**

"NADESHIKO!" yelled my brother, charging through the halls of the house. "NADESHI—" I crashed into him.

"What?" I asked grumpily, rubbing my head.

"Nade—" he said, panicky and seemingly unfazed by our collision, "AMU SAW THE POSTER."

My pain was forgotten as my heart stopped.

"SHE_ WHAT_?"

"The _poster_, Nade, the _goddamn_ poster for your performance. She _SAW_ it."

I could barely believe what I was hearing. Our worst nightmare had been confirmed—Amu had seen the poster.

Why, you ask, is this a problem?

Well, it's because that Nagi-is-Nade thing is a lie. I am real—me—Nadeshiko—I'm real. However, we thought it'd be an easier transition for Nagi to just say that he'd been me all along and…well, you know the rest.

Us being twins, Temari and Rhythm have no trouble switching off, you know? So it was easy to prove to Rima (the suspicious blonde that she is) that Nagi had been me all along. As for Kukai and Tadase, all Nagi had to do was pull a quick-change to convince them.

I am a secret. Fujisaki Nadeshiko is not supposed to exist, because it goes against the traditions set down by my family. The females of the Fujisaki household are to be kept secret until they are eighteen—I've not been out in public since my days at Seiyo Academy.

Don't get me wrong, though—that 'boys being raised as girls' thing isn't a lie. Nagihiko truly had to pose as a girl for the first eleven years of his life—poor thing.

But yes, I did actually go to school with Amu and I served as the Queen of the Guardians. Yes, I was sent to Europe to study dance. Yes, Nagihiko appeared in my stead. And _yes, _I will be returning to Europe after this performance.

I'm getting ahead of myself here, though. There were more pressing issues at hand—namely, how we would be able to switch off from Nagi to Nade in order to keep the pretense up for Rima while keeping Amu naïve—not that it would be hard to suffocate any suspicions of Amu's—an elephant could fall on the classroom and Amu wouldn't know it until someone told her.

Nevertheless, I love Amu—even with her numerous faults—and so does Ikuto.

Ohoho. Were you not informed of this?

Ikuto is in Europe, no? Well, I just so happened to run into him.

He's still as good-looking as always (no surprise there), and like I said—he still loves Amu.

But I digress.

"So," I said, composing myself, "Does she want to see me?"

"SEE YOU?!?!" Nagi cried, throwing his hands up, "She practically _begged_ me to let her visit you!"

I sighed. I should've known.


	2. Chapter 2

**From here on out, it'll be nothing like the episode, mmkay? :3**

* * *

**Nadeshiko's POV**

"TURN, Nadeshiko, TURN!"

Hello? I was already in an uncomfortable enough position as it was—but my _dear_ mother was clearly unsatisfied.

"No," she said, shaking her head, "That's not good enough. To be a truly _perfect_ wife," here she got that sparkly look in her eyes again, "You must be poised and graceful at all times…"

I tuned her out, having long ago perfected the art of sleeping with my eyes open. I'd just managed to doze off when—

"OI! NADESHIKO!" a certain violet-haired twin of mine came barging in, breaking Mother's favorite vase in the process. "I've got the _perfect _plan for…" he trailed off when he saw our mother looking at him with murder in her eyes.

"FUJISAKI NAGIHIKO," she thundered, "COME HERE SO I CAN KICK YOUR ASS."

"Hrmph," I muttered, "What happened to being 'poised at all times'?"

~ x ~ x ~ x ~ x ~ x ~

A little while later, Nagi was in the kitchen holding an icepack to his head.

"What happened to kicking your ass?" I snickered.

Giving me the same glare that Mother had given him, he snapped, "She settled for hitting me with the broom."

Now laughing openly at his misfortune, I caught my breath long enough to ask him what his idea was.

I was rewarded with a blank stare. That blow to the head couldn't have affected him that much…

~ x ~ x ~ x ~ x ~ x ~

**Nagihiko's POV**

Around 1 in the morning, it hit me like a lightning bolt, and I jolted out of bed. Shoving my feet into my slippers, I ran as quietly as I could towards Nade's room.

"Hey, Nadeshiko," I stage-whispered, "Naaaaade…"

Taking a step forward into her room, I immediately felt a noose tightening around my feet, and I fell soon after.

"Oh, crap—" the lights in her room flashed on, an alarm blared, and Nade's voice was screaming prerecorded expletives at me.

I'd forgotten about her security system, dammit.

Moments later, Mother burst into the room with her facemask on.

Needless to say, she wasn't pleased.


End file.
